Starting a paladin
Note that this is still under construction and feel free to add any information you have. I simply incorporated the template and started doing initial editing. = Introduction = So, you're thinking of playing a Paladin? This page is intended to give a short overview of what to do over the first 10 levels or so, just to get you started on the right path. If you're looking for more of an overview of the class's abilities, see the main Paladin page. For more advanced topics, see the Paladin Tactics. Things to consider when picking a Paladin: * Do I like to be able to play two roles at once (Tank and Healer)? * Do I mind not being able to use ranged weapons unless I want to take up a main profession (Engineering)? * Do I like to be able solo effectively? For a more general overview on starting out playing WoW, see the Newbie Guide = Race Selection = Paladins are the Alliance-only class. Even in the Alliance, only Dwarves and Humans can be a Paladin. In general, neither race is better then the other. Dwarves have a few nice abilities that will help you out (cold resistance, stone form), while humans have benefits to maces and swords that help as well, not forgetting the +10% reputation gained. The one primary thing to note is that the bonus Dwarves get, the gun skill, is lost on a Paladin since they can never use guns. Not a gamebreaker, but just be aware of it. Dwarves start with higher Strength and Stamina, but have less Intellect than Humans. Come the expansion, Blood Elves will be able to choose the Paladin class. Two of the Blood Elves's abilities actually helps to restore mana, a mana draining spell and a mana "battery" spell, which is very useful for a mana-based class such as the Paladin. However, the Blood Elves are Horde-only. The Draenei will also be able to choose Paladin, and have two interesting abilities useful for a Paladin; one is a HoT spell, while the other is a +hit% aura. The Draenei are Alliance-only. Overall though, particularly for casual gamers, there's really no major difference between the races - choose the race that you want to play, whether for its looks, its voice, or because its simply good fun! = Early Leveling = The easiest way to progress through the early levels is to simply do any and all of the quests you can find. Not only will you breeze through the first 5 to 10 levels, but you'll get useful gear and precious money. Money is particulary important so you can purchase your spells and abilities. You will spend levels 1 to 5 in your starting town. Make sure you get all the abilities and spells you can from your trainer. Between level 5 and 6 you'll find yourself heading off to your second town and a new trainer who can teach you various things. At the second town, repeat the process - do each and every quest you can find. It's important to keep up with your abilities and your gear. Now is also an appropriate time to start training in your chosen professions. See the Paladin Quests page for more information about the paladin-specific quests. = Notable Early Quests = A listing of all Paladin specific quests can be found over at Thottbot here. The quests listed below are the low level quests (1-10) that get you some equipment useful for a Paladin at that time. Also, be sure to complete your Level 10-13 quest series (Tome of Divinity) which gives you the ability to raise others. Dwarves * Dwarven Outfitters - the Boar Handler Gloves are a good prize at early levels. * A New Threat - Rustic Belt * The Troll Cave - Upgrade your weapon. * The Stolen Journal - Dwarven Kite Shield * Evershine and Return to Bellowfiz - A decent axe. Humans * Brotherhood of Thieves - Nice Early Weapon Reward * Grape Manifest - Latched Belt * Skirmish at Echo Ridge - Some nice mail boots. * Princess Must Die! - Mail bracers. = On Soloing and Grouping = Soloing See the Paladin Tactics solo information section. The most important thing to remember is your strength: lasting a long time. Always keep that at the forefront and you can take on most enemies with ease. Grouping As a Paladin you will be playing two roles (described in greater details in the Paladin Tactics section). You will either be a Tank first and foremost and a healer secondary, or the Primary healer and the Tank secondary. It is important to know what your role is before getting into combat and acting accordingly to prevent unecessary party deaths and disasters. As a healer, remember to "assist" the main party tank and ensure that the focus of your party's firepower is on one mob. Make certain you continue to heal your entire party and keep everyone buffed to the best of your ability. As a paladin, you must also switch your Aura's so that they are helping your team the most under the current circumstances. Read the Paladin Tactics section for more on this. Always be prepared to jump in as a tank if the primary tank goes down, or if a secondary mob goes after one of your weaker groupmates. But remember that everyone is counting on you for healing, so even if you are holding off an enemy, keep healing your teammates and don't worry much about hurting the mob that is attacking you - your team will get to him as soon as they finish off the mob they are concentrating on. As a tank, make sure your group helps you. As a Paladin you don't do too much DPS, but you last a LONG time. What this means is unlike a warrior that can take and deal out damage, you can simply take the damage while your teammates do the damage. This is one of the reasons a Paladin/Mage combo is so powerful - the mage can do high DPS, while the Paladin can simply hold back enemies and keep the mage safe. Remember to keep yourself healed and keep up the buffs on your teammates - it will help the entire group in the long run. One of the most important things to remember is to use your Paladin Abilities effectively. A Paladin isn't a Warrior and without using their abilities they are dramatically weaker then they would be otherwise. = Useful Professions = The Paladin can benefit directly and indirectly from many of the professions available. Primary Professions * Mining and Blacksmithing : This combo affords the Paladin an easy way to upgrade arms and armor if they are unlucky with drops. Since having a good weapon and great armor is one of the most vital parts of being a Paladin, this combo helps the Paladin stay at his peak throughout his adventures. * Skinning and Leatherworking : Skinning is a good source of money if you sell the leather and hides, but is otherwise useless for a Paladin. Leatherworking is not useful to a Paladin, since he/she will never want to wear leather armor and can't use crafted quivers due to not being able to use ranged weapons. Only take these two if you are planning to use them to make money, but they won't directly help you in any way aside from raising funds. * Skinning and one of Mining or Herbalism : Two gathering skills (one of which requires the mini-map to find resource nodes) can provide a strong income. Many players begin their careers as dual gatherers, changing to a crafting profession in later levels as they become more established. * Tailoring : Making bags for others is a good way to earn money on young servers, but beware that the market typically dries up as the server matures and players move to dropped bags such as Traveler's Backpacks. Other than bags, there are few reasons for Paladins to be tailors, since they do not usually wear cloth armor. * Herbalism and Alchemy : Since you can heal yourself with spells, even in combat, Alchemy is somewhat less useful to Paladins than to non-healing classes. One benefit of Alchemy is mana potions: without mana a Paladin is in trouble, so these potions are vital in case of emergencies. In addition, a health potion can be downed quickly to bring back your health when making a quick escape. Be aware that potions can be found as drops from mobs and purchased at the auction house, but purchasing them will cost more than making your own. * Enchanting : Tied to a money-making gathering skill, this would allow you to enchant your weapons in the way you want, when you want. Overall however, it may just be easier to find an enchanter and pay them to do the work for you. Although, You can make quite a bit of money buying low leveled Uncommon items, Disenchanting them, And selling the resulting materials. * Mining and Engineering : Engineering can be a great profession pair for Paladins for one reason - it's one of the few ways for a Paladin to get a ranged attack (see ranged options in Paladin Overview. Dynamite and bombs allow the Paladin to have at least one (albeit minor) ranged attack that they can use. While difficult to see at lower levels, the disadvantage of not having a ranged attack becomes glaringly apparent when trying to pull enemies (particularly from camps) at higher levels. In the end, do what you want. Many of the combinations help a certain style of play and selecting a combination based on your play style will just enhance your enjoyment of the game. Remember that you can later change professions if need be. Start your professions early: they are usually inexpensive, and starting early helps ensure that anything a Paladin can create with his/her skills is applicable to the character's level. Secondary Professions * Cooking * Fishing * First Aid Cooking and First Aid are of less use to paladins than most melee classes, since paladins can heal themselves. Many cooked foods, however, do provide buffs such as a boost in total health and/or spirit. In addition, cooked foods typically sell for more than their components, providing a useful source of extra money after normal hunting. First Aid can be useful for healing when you are trying to conserve mana (or are simply out of it). Many high-level raiding groups require every character to have a high First Aid skill for those reasons. Fishing is no longer the money-maker that it once was, but can still be useful to raise your cooking skill and provide buff food. = Long-Term Goals = '' Stuff like gear, quests, general long-term aims. e.g. melee classes might want to focus more on equipment'' Verigan's Fist This 2H Mace is an excellent weapon for a young Paladin and can be obtained at level 20. For more information about the quest to obtain this item, see the Paladin Quests entry. = See Also = Paladin Paladin Spells Paladin Abilities Paladin Talents Paladin Tactics Paladin Attributes Paladin Quests ---- Paladin,Starting Paladin,Starting